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Friday, September 30, 2011

Everyone
new today was going to be a big day for New York Rangers goaltender Henrik
Lundqvist as he returned home, not only to Sweden, but to his former club
Frolunda.Before the game the Frolunda
franchise did themselves extremely proud with a moving tribute to their former
netminder that Lundqvist himself said after the game nearly had him in
tears.Lundqvist entered to an ovation
fitting of a king and he played like it with 32 saves in the Rangers 4-2 win.

The
Rangers got on the board when Ryan Bourque sprung Kris Newbury for a goal over
the shoulder.It was another play by Bourque
to make the Rangers coaching staff take notice of his all-around game, but it
still likely won’t be enough for him to be on the roster for opening night.

After
taking and killing off numerous penalties to start the second period, Michael
Del Zotto would put the Rangers up when Mats Zuccarello found him pinching to
the slot.The goal for Del Zotto had to
feel good for him, but the play was made by Zuccarello who shined in this game.
Zuccarello was not done with Del Zotto’s
setup as he had another brilliant pass for Erik Christensen who scored on a low
shot to make it 3-1 New York.If he was
not already a lock to make the roster before the game, Zuccarello’s performance
in his return to Sweden should clinch it for him.Maybe Zuccarello was more comfortable on the
bigger ice surface, but the plays for the goals were not a product of that
difference.With playmaking skills like
that he can be a huge contributor for New York this year if paired with Derek
Stepan again.

Lundqvist
was beaten in the third with Del Zotto in the box, but Mike Rupp would seal the
game with just 3:12 left off a feed from Brendan Bell.

Lundqvist
is the easy choice for standout player today as he was brilliant in keeping the
team alive when they took far too many penalties.Great move by the organization giving
Lundqvist the “A” for the game.

Zuccarello
as I mentioned earlier continued his excellent showing this year and just looks
more confident in what he is doing this season.

Hopefully
Christensen’s goal does not become an excuse to keep him around

Erixon
was much better today, but the question remains if it was too late for him

Del
Zotto is getting his offensive instincts back, which is certainly good news,
but there is still work to be done.

Bell
continues to keep his name in the conversation

As
a team the penalties need to stop as this has been a trend in their preseason
games.Yes, a lot of young players were
in the lineup today, but it is ridiculous the number of penalties and 5-on-3
advantages they are giving against.

With that list of scratches that would leave the Rangers without
most of their top offensive and defensive players today, but it also leads to a
different kind of intrigue as much of the lineup will be those players battling
for roster spots.Up front the Rangers
will still have Boyle, Wolski, Prust, Zuccarelo and Rupp, but on the blue line
it will be all AHL and prospects in the lineup. This should mean another look at Dylan McIlrath while Del Zotto, Erixon, Bell, and Bickel continue their battle to crack the roster.

In other news, Rosen reports that Michael Sauer is back at practice today, though he was skating with the scratches, which is very good news that his recently sprained shoulder is getting better and he should be ready for next week's opener.